National Party of Australia

The National Party of Australia, also known as The Nationals, is a political party that contests elections at the federal, state and territory levels. Its primary focus is on representing the interests of rural and regional Australians, including farmers, pastoralists and communities outside major metropolitan areas. The party develops policy positions on topics such as agriculture, water management, infrastructure, education and health services that affect those regions. It routinely participates in the formulation of national legislation and contributes to government when in coalition.

The Nationals operate as a distinct entity within the Australian political landscape while maintaining a long-standing partnership with the Liberal Party in the Coalition. This alliance allows the party to influence government decision‑making while retaining its own organisational structure, leadership and policy platform. The party holds seats in the Australian House of Representatives and Senate, and it also has representation in several state parliaments, particularly in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. Its organisational footprint includes branch networks in regional towns and rural districts across the country.

In February 2019, the party was among the targets of a sophisticated cyber‑attack that Australian intelligence attributed to China's Ministry of State Security, which also compromised the national parliament and two other political parties. The intrusion accessed policy documents on taxation and foreign affairs as well as private email exchanges between legislators and constituents, although investigators found no evidence that the stolen data was used to influence the subsequent election. The incident highlighted the vulnerability of political organisations to foreign cyber espionage and prompted increased security cooperation with allied nations. These facts constitute the publicly known aspects of the party's recent history and operational context.